Many business leaders and in-house counsel say that they strongly prefer alternatives to litigation. So why is litigation still the default process for most commercial disputes?

My previous Slaw column looked at the question of whether lawyers are “hijacking” mediation and arbitration. I speculated that one of the problems may simply be that lawyers are risk-averse. This leads them to follow the well-trodden path of litigation, rather than exploring less well-known alternatives.

Some recent research may shed light on the apparent disconnect between the dispute resolution parties say they want and what they actually do.

Pre-empting and Resolving Technology, Media . . . [more]

Though the market is more competitive now than ever, new revenue opportunities arise regularly. One of the keys to taking advantage of them is through strong relationships and a robust network of contacts. It should also go without saying that having strong client relationships is the best defensive tactic to guard against encroachment by competitors.

As we head into the summer months, it’s a good time to pause and reflect on your client relationship building and business development activities so far this year. If you had to grade your efforts, would you get an A or a C? If a . . . [more]

Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and which French-language case have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.

For this last week:

1. Saugeen First Nation v Ontario (MNRF), 2017 ONSC 3456

[144] During my detailed review of the dealings among the parties I made numerous findings that various acts or omissions by MNRF were “breaches” of the Crown’s duty to consult. As noted above, Treaties are not to be construed like commercial agreements. Similarly, the conduct of the parties during consultations is not . . . [more]

Virtual reality has arrived. And it has the potential to revolutionize the way we learn, the way we conduct business, the way we interpret medical imaging, the way we litigate, and so on.

If admitted into evidence, virtual reality can change the way we present medical imaging and present expert testimony in the courtroom. Additionally with virtual reality, jurors/judges can view in 3D crime scenes or even experience events reconstructed in 3D.

However, the technology has the effect of skewing perceptions. Merely showing the experience from one side would be highly problematic. And could give a dishonest interpretation of the . . . [more]

“Spare the rod, spoil the child”, the old adage went. In Canada, we have come a long way from that belief in child-rearing, even with the availability of section 43 of the Criminal Code to parents/teachers or others standing in the place of a parent.

To raise children, given what research into child development indicates, requires incredible expertise and ongoing education. Early child educators, academics and parenting experts advise parents how best to navigate this complicated road. In my experience, many of those who are charged with over-discipline of their children did not have a great example of parenting themselves, . . . [more]

Here are excerpts from the most recent tips on SlawTips, the site that each week offers up useful advice, short and to the point, on research, writing, and practice.

Research & Writing

-ee, -or
Neil Guthrie

Not the donkey from Winnie the Pooh, but a pair of word endings. First, –ee. As in trustee, lessee, mortgagee, bailee, drawee, payee, attendee, mentee and the like. This ending is common in law, often indicating the indirect object of some action. …

Technology

Searching Google Efficiently and Effectively
Alan Kilpatrick

The Internet is . . . [more]

It is now generally recognized that “code is law”: how computers process the millions of on/off, yes/no signals in their binary universe can have legal effects beyond their obvious output. Deciding how computers handle data they receive is a matter of choice, and those choices have consequences. These consequences arise whether or not the software writers, the coders, are aware of their choices or assumptions.

Two developments have brought the coding issue back to the fore in public discussion. The first is the computerization of what used to be purely mechanical devices. The analysis of physical phenomena is done, pursued . . . [more]

Each Monday we present brief excerpts of recent posts from five of Canada’s award­-winning legal blogs chosen at random* from more than 80 recent Clawbie winners. In this way we hope to promote their work, with their permission, to as wide an audience as possible.

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. Library Technician Dialog 2. Legal Post Blog 3. Slater Vecchio Connected 4. Employment & Human Rights Law in Canada 5. Labour Pains

Library Technician Dialog
Readers’ Advisory

You think you know where to find books in the library, when you are a librarian. But my experience proves . . . [more]

Lawyers agree on few things, but one of the issues that there appears to be consensus on is that the legal system is in crisis. The family law system is particularly strained, and complaints about family law go back decades.

I touched on this briefly in my recent column in National Magazine,

From 1997 to 1999, the Special Joint Committee on Child Custody and Access studied the impact of family law on children. The main complaint was that the process affected parents’ relationships with their children.

Litigants (sic) pointed to a presumed gender bias in the courts, unethical practices

One Sunday each month OnPoint Legal Research provides Slaw with an extended summary of, and counsel’s commentary on, an important case from the British Columbia, Alberta, or Ontario court of appeal.

Hansra v. Hansra, 2017 BCCA 199

AREAS OF LAW:   Family law; Special costs; Rehearing; Limits of discretion

~ A judge’s discretion to reopen a matter, while broad, is not unfettered. It is governed by established principles. ~

BACKGROUND:

This was a family law case that resulted in a special costs order against the Respondent, Jagtar Singh Hansra. The Appellant, Puran Jote Hansra, sought a reapportionment of assets in her . . . [more]

Every week we present the summary of a decision handed down by a Québec court provided to us by SOQUIJ and considered to be of interest to our readers throughout Canada. SOQUIJ is attached to the Québec Department of Justice and collects, analyzes, enriches, and disseminates legal information in Québec.

PÉNAL (DROIT) : Lorsque des transactions criminelles distinctes sont sanctionnées de façon concomitante par un même juge au cours d’une même audience de détermination de la peine, toutes les peines d’emprisonnement imposées consécutivement doivent être additionnées sans tenir compte de la détention présentencielle; si le total est inférieur à deux . . . [more]

On one Sunday each month we bring you a summary from Supreme Advocacy LLP of recent decisions at the Supreme Court of Canada. Supreme Advocacy LLP offers a weekly electronic newsletter, Supreme Advocacy Letter, to which you may subscribe. It’s a summary of all appeals and leaves to appeal granted, so you know what the S.C.C. will soon be dealing with (June 17 to July 19, 2017 inclusive).

Appeals

Civil Procedure/International Law: Forum Selection Clauses

Douez v. Facebook, Inc., 2017 SCC 33 (36616)

While s. 4 of the B.C. Privacy Act does not override forum selection clauses, strong reasons . . . [more]